2018 Oscar Nominations Celebrate the Efforts of Several Marvel Films

This morning, the 91st Annual Academy Award nominations were announced, and much to the excitement of Disney and Marvel film fans around the world, we made it, ladies and gentlemen.

After the cultural phenomenon of Black Panther hit the world about a year ago, speculation immediately began on whether or not the magic of Wakanda would extend all the way to the Oscar red carpet. Fans advocated for it and that support was matched by Disney and Marvel Studios, who rolled out a top-notch campaigning effort that paid off in aces! Following the brief stint of the infamous “Outstanding Popular Film” category, it seems that the sights for the highest awards in the land have finally been met, despite the odds being against it.

Now with the nominations unveiled, we can count Black Panther among the small but memorable assortment of superhero films (Logan, The Dark Knight, and Spider-Man 2, to name a few) that have made it to the famous awards show.

The big news, however, is that Black Panther has made history as the first superhero film to ever be nominated for the coveted Best Picture category, something Marvel and Disney fans and execs were hoping for. Although it is not unheard of for superhero films to be up for technical awards such as sound, costumes, and visual effects, a Best Picture nomination has always been the seemingly unachievable goal. That is, until now.

In total, Black Panther garnered seven nominations: Best Picture, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Original Score and Best Original Song. These seven spots make up the majority of Disney’s 11 total noms, and it also ranks as the third highest amount of nominations for a single film. In addition, the Black Panther nominations include a great percentage of people of color, several of which are the first to ever be nominated in their categories or within the first five to be nominated.

Also to be noted and congratulated is the late-in-the-game entry that has already taken the awards show circuit by storm, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Although the animated film by Sony Pictures didn’t debut until the very end of the year, it has been an instant hit among audiences, critics, and apparently Academy voters, being hailed as one of the best (animated or otherwise) films of the year by many outlets.

Since the start of awards show season, Into the Spider-Verse has been steadily beating out Disney animated films, and this nomination for Best Animated Film could easily mean that the film is on track to continue that winning streak. Although Sony Pictures Animation has received a few scattered nominations in the past for other movies, Into the Spider-Verse is easily the most successful and decorated animated film the studio has produced.

Besides all this, Avengers: Infinity War also claimed a spot in the Best Visual Effects category—not bad to have the highest grossing film of the year plus an Oscar nomination. Given the gravity of the movie, it is an unsurprising and well-deserved nod to its astonishing visual effects.

We congratulate all the nominees, though we can’t help but have a special admiration for the film adaptations of stories and characters that Stan Lee had a hand in creating many years ago.